What is Warm Up America! (WUA!)

Welcome to Warm Up America! the charity that has warmed peoples' lives since 1991. It started in a small Wisconsin town with neighbors knitting and crocheting afghans for neighbors in need. Thanks to the creativity of founder Evie Rosen who came up with the idea of having volunteers knit or crochet small sections and then others join them together, the idea quickly caught on. Today Warm Up America distributes warm afghans, caps and other items to tens of thousands of people, thanks to the generosity of knitters and crocheters around the country.

Hills Bros. Teams Up With Warm Up America!

Hills Bros.®, famous for its coffee and cappuccino lines, and Warm Up America! recently announced a new partnership in conjunction with the introduction of the company’s new Hot Cocoa line. Because Hills Bros. is as serious about making a difference by fighting poverty and keeping people warm as they are about creating good products, for every box of Hot Cocoa purchased, Hills Bros. will donate a pair of cozy socks to Warm Up America through 2017.

"We are delighted to partner with Hills Bros. on this initiative," says Mary Colucci, WUA! Foundation Executive Director. What many people do not realize is that socks are the number one item requested by shelters. So this year we will be shipping socks along with the thousands of crocheted and knitted afghans and articles of clothing to shelters and social service agencies nationwide.

"We’ll literally be keeping people warm from head to toe," continues Colucci, "and we know people will enjoy Hill Bros.’ new Hot Cocoa too." Cristina Itze, Brand Manager, Hills Bros.® Cappuccino and Hot Cocoa, Massimo Zanetti Beverage USA, explains what sets its new product apart: "Most hot cocoa beverages are formulated with artificial sweeteners like sucralose. We wanted to offer consumers a better product. So Hills Bros. developed a hot cocoa product made with real cocoa and real sugar, plus it’s compatible with K-CUP® style brewers."

The logo for the new Hills Bros Hot Cocoa line is a delightful puppet appropriately named: Coco. Designer Amy Bahrt interpreted Coco in knitting and the pattern is now available as a PDF download. It would make a wonderful gift for your favorite kid! Check it out and we think you’ll enjoy the hot cocoa too.